Sadly the centre stone from Barbara's antique five stone diamond ring fell out never to be seen again and the ring long languished in a drawer waiting on its time to shine once more.

Looking at the other pieces in her collection it seemed that diamond earrings were one of the few things missing, so we settled on making up low tapering bezels in 9ct white gold. 9ct is perfect in earrings because they don't see too much wear and tear and when rhodium plated the colour is exactly the same as 18ct, but not so the price!

Old cuts free from their mount

When popped out of the mount you can see the shape of the old cuts is totally different from the modern round brilliant cut diamond. They are usually deeper and more cushion shaped. This shape is a little trickier to set than round, but I think you'll agree the finished earrings were worth the extra trouble.

Diamond studs

And here they are...

Love how the cushion shape of the old cut still carries through to the bezel.

Hello and welcome to my jewellery and goldsmithing blog

I've always been curious about how things are made, whether that's currachs and candles or how they get the fig in the fig roll.

I may not be much the wiser as to that last one, but I'd like to take this opportunity to share with you how I make and remodel jewellery via a collection of photographs of works in progress and of finished pieces.

Please feel free to comment or ask questions if you're feeling curious and to pin to your heart's content.

eva dorney goldsmith | contemporary handmade jewellery design

Contemporary gold, platinum and silver gem-set jewellery designed and handmade in Dublin

Contemporary handmade Irish jewellery designed and made in Dublin by goldsmith Eva Dorney using precious metals, diamonds and gemstones. Specialising in custom made engagement rings and handmade wedding bands that will last a lifetime.

Eva also designs and makes a range of ready-to-wear gold and silver gem-set jewellery, which can be customized to include any combination of metals and gemstones.

Additionally Eva offers a remodelling service if you want to rework an existing piece and a remelting service, where she will recycle your old gold and make you something new from your own metal, sentiment intact.